Moonfall
by SuiteGrl
Summary: Mundane daily tasks and the survival of your clan dependent on your stagnance? There's something more for the strong spirit.
1. Moon

She sat by the computer. This wasn't the first time she hadn't been able to sleep this week. With the long summer ahead of her and a love-torn heart not quite behind her; she wondered where she would find the energy to face another day.  
  
Her name was Moon - rightfully so. With a face round and beautiful and skin as pale as ivory she was just as awe-deserving as one of the seven moons. Large green eyes peered out under heavy lashes and lips moved effortlessly in perfect proportion. Words came easily to Moon. So easily, in fact, that she rarely stopped her tongue short of a verbal fight. Though, this fact troubled her no more than that of falling leaves in autumn. Her long dark hair stuck to her forehead that night. However, this would be the last night for such serenity for awhile.  
  
Staring at her monitor, Moon groped for an escape from her boredom. Clicking and pointing, her daydreams lead her back to her troubles. Not only would she be turning 16 soon, but she knew that she had to pick a husband. Thinking of her current boyfriend made her shudder. Lank and aloof, the poor brown-haired boy could never fill the emptiness she felt. Beautiful as he was with sharp blue eyes and slender figure, Mauvk had his own life and thoughts that didn't complement Moon's deep persona.  
  
Never-the-less, a husband needed to be found, and quick. Though musing about the fact only made the pale girl bitter about the whole tradition. Why couldn't she be swept off her feet and fall madly in love with someone who she would never call husband, only lover? The reason lay with necessity. The Neztica people needed to ensure that their dwindling numbers survived against all odds. A woman's heart, strong as Moon's was, could never stand against such a need. So, to be married by the tenth month of her 16th year she would be.  
  
Tearing her from thought, a window smashed to nothingness in another room. Eye's wide, Moon froze to her chair. Panic swept through her like a cold echo, reverberating off her fingertips and back through her body. She heard a grating noise from the back of the room and whirled to face the door. The noise grew louder and more purposeful as time crawled through Moon's mind. She stood up in a stupor and turned to find her window open.  
  
A bright flash of light illuminated the room and the scared girl stumbled toward the wall - her ceiling light had exploded, sending sharp shards in every direction. In pain, Moon covered her shoulder cowering. A piece of the giant light bulb had lodged in her arm. Bleeding and cowering, she stumbled in the darkness. Not a moment later, her feet were no longer on the ground and a pair of strong hands grasped her waist securely.  
  
"Don't be afraid," a soft masculine voice whispered. Though Moon was very afraid and couldn't make out who her captor was in the darkness. She could feel the grain of the wood through her pants as the man pulled her out the window - the last thing she felt before unconsciousness took her.  
  
To be continued. 


	2. Ardain

CHAPTER TWO: Ardain  
  
In a haze, Moon blinked into the stinging sunlight. Her head and body ached, though she couldn't quite remember why. Puzzled, she stared blankly at the unfamiliar window. I'm waking up just now, she thought. All that was a dream after all. With effort, the ivory-skinned girl pulled the soft down blanket over her head.  
  
She was falling. Moon was falling off of something but she couldn't tell what or why. Strangely, she didn't feel scared, just that she was supposed to be here, wherever here was. Abruptly, her green eyes could see. She was back in her room. But, she was watching herself stare into the computer screen. Walking over to herself, Moon gasped as the situation became clear. This was her. in front of her! Am I dead. she mused.  
  
Softly, she reached out for the girl who was herself. Encountering nothing but air, Moon turned for the window. Something was wrong here. The window was broken and blood dripped from broken shards, but the Moon in front of her seemed unconcerned. What is this, Moon thought?  
  
Sweating, she found herself sitting up in the strange room. The sun was not blazing through the window quite so fiercely and her head-ache had subsided a little.  
  
"Glad you're awake." A deep voice murmured.  
  
"I. I." Moon stammered at the soft voice. "Why?" With her memory slowly returning, Moon's body felt weighed down as if by one-thousand stones. Slumping back into her chair, the perceptive green eyes searched the room for the man with the deep voice.  
  
"Here," The melancholy voice was closer now and a young man sat easily into an overstuffed chair by the window. "Don't be afraid, Shawnin Mel. Your wounds will heal and you will be able to begin your training."  
  
The blonde man was looking at Moon as he spoke, though she couldn't imagine why he had called her Shawnin Mel. As for the wounds, moving her left arm sent strands of pain shooting up through her shoulder where a bandage restricted further movement. Wordlessly, Moon raised her eyes to the man.  
  
Blue eyes shone purposefully under messy blonde tuffs of hair. Tanned skin gave those eyes the appearance of glassy crystals, shining in the now not- so-bright room. Soft ashen lips gave a slight hint of concern as well as amusement as Moon continued to study the stranger. What was it that was so different about him, Moon puzzled. His ears seemed to hear every movement and, his shirt, Moon noticed as the man moved to stand, was only covering the front of his slender body. Half a shirt?  
  
Moon's headache returned as she shifted uncomfortably on the soft bed. "Who are you?" She whispered in a barely audible voice.  
  
"You need rest now. My name is Ardain." He flashed a quick smile before continuing. "We have much to talk about princess, but we need to talk when you are well." With that, the last rays of sunlight died over the window and the room was dark. "In the morning, we will talk over breakfast."  
  
To be continued. 


End file.
